Introduction: Connecting a 4 X 4 Membrane Keypad to an Arduino

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There are a lot of instructions and examples of how to connect a 4 x 3 membrane keypad but I couldn't find instructions on how to connect a 4 x 4 Membrane Keypad to an Arduino.

Step 1: Materials

All that is needed for this Instructable is:

  • An Arduino compatible board with 8 free digital pins
  • A 4 x 4 Membrane Keypad

Step 2: Install Keypad Library

This library is available via the Arduino IDE library manager. If you are using a modern IDE (1.6.2 or above), you can simply use the menu:

Sketch->Include Library->Manage Libraries... Then search for Keypad.

Once found, click on its entry and the install button will appear.

The full instructions for the Keypad library can be found here.

Step 3: Modifying the Example Sketch

In Example-->Keypad the default sketch "HelloKeypad" is set up for a 4 x 3 matrix.

Here is the modified code for the 4 x 4 Keypad:

#include <Keypad.h>

const byte ROWS = 4; //four rows
const byte COLS = 4; //four columns
char keys[ROWS][COLS] = {
  {'1','2','3','A'},
  {'4','5','6','B'},
  {'7','8','9','C'},
  {'*','0','#','D'}
};

byte rowPins[ROWS] = {5, 4, 3, 2}; //connect to the row pinouts of the keypad
byte colPins[COLS] = {9, 8, 7, 6}; //connect to the column pinouts of the keypad

Keypad keypad = Keypad( makeKeymap(keys), rowPins, colPins, ROWS, COLS );

void setup(){
   Serial.begin(9600);
}
  
void loop(){
  char key = keypad.getKey();
  
  if (key){
    Serial.println(key);
  }
}

Step 4: Connecting the Arduino to the Keypad

Using the diagram above as a reference the leftmost pin is pin 8 on the keypad and the rightmost is pin 1.

Pins 8, 7, 6, 5 on the keypad should be connected to digital pins 5, 4, 3, 2 on the Arduino respectively.

Pins 4, 3, 2, 1 on the keypad should be connected to digital pins 9, 8, 7, 6 on the Arduino respectively.

byte rowPins[ROWS] = {5, 4, 3, 2}; //connect to the row pinouts of the keypad
byte colPins[COLS] = {9, 8, 7, 6}; //connect to the column pinouts of the keypad

Step 5: Testing

Upload the sketch to your Arduino and open the Serial Monitor.

The pressed keys should be displayed as in the window above.

Step 6: Going Further

In Examples-->Keypad there are several examples. All the example sketches can be made to function with the 4 x 4 matrix by changing the following lines of code:

const byte ROWS = 4; //four rows<br>const byte COLS = 4; //three columns
char keys[ROWS][COLS] = {
  {'1','2','3','A'},
  {'4','5','6','B'},
  {'7','8','9','C'},
  {'*','0','#','D'}
};
byte rowPins[ROWS] = {5, 4, 3, 2}; //connect to the row pinouts of the keypad
byte colPins[COLS] = {9, 8, 7, 6}; //connect to the column pinouts of the keypad